Monday, March 23, 2009

My husband went to New Orleans and all I got was...

No - not a lousy t-shirt - my husband brought home terrific things from his trip to New Orleans. (yes, that is a cabbage around his neck) But first can I indulge myself for a moment and nominate him for a "Blogger Husband of the Year" award? You see, I asked him if he would be willing to stop by Magazine Street and take some pictures of home design stores for me. I've never been to New Orleans and I liken my request to a Blogger Hail Mary Pass. Well, my wonderful husband said yes!! Then the very kind and gracious Valorie of Visual Vamp offered to show him around the fabulous store Perch where she pointed him in the right direction - and now I have a delightful yellow papier mache bird perched in my office.Valorie very kindly let Dan see where she and her colleagues do their creative work for clients. I love the tweedy fabric to the left. You can see the headboard in the background is used as an inspiration board.

Looks like there's a beautiful settee in the making. Then Dan was off to take pics of some of the wonderful things in this store.

Valorie was mapping out the placement of these fab plates on the floor before hanging them up on the wall. Love the all the color and patterns.

A very dreamy swedish clock that has been the topic of some great blogger posts lately. Love the lights and the narrow mirror over to the left. Isn't the mirror below really unique and interesting?

A preying mantis rocker - so very cool!

Gorgeous fabric. This red and white chair is one of my favorite things featured in these pics.

Valorie - thanks so much for being such a welcoming host to Dan when he visited the store. You made the whole "Can I take some pictures for my blogger wife?" fun for him.

A leftover from an earlier in the week St. Patrick's Day celebration. This looks like my kind-of city! Not that my husband wasn't busy enough giving two presentations at a conference - I had one more request for him. Would he please eat dinner one night at Jacque Imo's? But this request I had a hunch would make Dan very happy.Jacque Leonardi is from the next town over from where I grew up and a long, long, long time ago I briefly dated his cousin. Dan had the alligator cheesecake for an appetizer and the Cajun bouillabaisse for dinner and it was terrific! I can attest to the alligator as Dan put some on ice and brought it home to us - delish! Here's another pic with the chef who made Dan's bouillabaisse. New Orleans looks like such a great place!!

Love the photos that Dan took! I am so jealous of the shopping and the eating that he got to do in New Orleans. Tell him, please, how much your readers appreciate his photos. Here's an unrelated request: I am looking to update my shelter magazine subscriptions and jetison some and pick up others. My list currently includes the three you recommended from Cottage and Home, House Beautiful, Southern Accents and Veranda. Am I missing a real gem? THANK YOU!!

Love the black-and-white fabric on the sofa -- so glad your husband could help you out with your request. Please tell him "thanks" from us! And surely after his trip to New Orleans he's decided that you need to go on the next one. You cannot miss out anymore.